The Lost Princess
by WinchestersDollFace
Summary: After Smaug causes a rift between the Dwarves and Elves,an Elfish princess named Adrielle is born.Much like Kili she is torn from a kingdom that was meant to be hers.Raised on stories of faraway lands, she dreams of leaving her boring life for adventure.When danger comes her way she realizes that she was not meant for adventure, especially if she can't have Kili's support. Kili/OC
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first Hobbit story and I am really nervous! I do want to hear what people think, so if it's not too much to ask, please leave a review! I'm trying to write my OC a way that is as un-Mary Sueish as possible, but let's face it, not everybody will be satisfied. I do still hope everybody enjoys this, though! If anybody is interested in editing the story for me, please let me know! ****Thanks!**

**Prologue**

The Elvin Lord of Eregion, Avourel, held his newborn daughter, Adrielle. He had never felt more love for anyone or anything. She was a unique being, both human and Elf at the same time. He marveled at the features his daughter had taken from his wife, Elora, who was being cared for by the healers. Adrielle had Elora's blue eyes as well as her turned up nose. Avourel had passed down his fair skin and pale hair. Her ears were unlike any other elf's or human's. They had a slight point to them, but not nearly enough to call it elvin, but not round enough to say they were of man.

The doors to his chambers opened and Elora's sister, Ayda, rushed in, a panicked look on her face. She took deep breaths and ran up to Avourel, dropping to her knees when she reached him. He looked into Ayda's green eyes and saw fear.

"Speak clearly, without haste," he ordered.

"Orcs are attacking the castle!" she wept. "They've killed Elora and are looking for you!"

Avourel stood quickly, Adrielle still in his arms. He felt his heart shatter, but he had a duty to protect his newborn. He had to give her to Elora and send them to Rivendell with guards. There, his closest friend, Elrond would protect Adrielle while Avourel fought for Eregion.

"Take Adrielle, go to Rivendell with the guards," he handed his infant to Ayda as she disappeared behind a set of doors Avourel had built for precisely this reason.

"Be safe," he whispered to himself as he was able to sense the orcs approaching his chambers.

**Chapter 1**

The day was sweltering as Adrielle tended to her father's, Belanor's, horses. She pet her favorite horses head while it neighed, making her smile. She had named the horse Stallion when she was younger because she couldn't think of anything creative. As sad as it was to compare herself to an animal, she and Stallion were alike. The horse spent its entire day in its stable while Adrielle spent her days in her small room. If her father wasn't ignoring her, then he was placing a bow in her hands or putting her on a horse, teaching her how to shoot and ride.

Belanor hadn't always been so distant. When she was younger, and when her mother, Hera, was alive, he always took her on his shorter ventures. He was a knight of Gondor, stationed near the Last Bridge. His job was to work as a courier for the King of Gondor. The king would send his men to Belanor, who would then have the task of spreading word to the lands past the Last Bridge. Most of the time he travelled to The Shire, taking Adrielle and the children who once lived in the house beside theirs, allowing them to pretend they were Elves battling an evil dragon or Orcs.

After her mother died when Adrielle was nearing her twelfth year, he stopped taking her with him and the neighbors left. She had found herself just as alone as Belanor, wishing he would laugh like he did before or take her once more to The Shire. When he began distancing himself, Adrielle reasoned he needed time to think. Maybe he still needed to think. After five years he was still healing.

Stallion neighed once again just as her father was entering the stables. He was a tall man, with blonde hair just like Adrielle's. He had a square face with a bit of stubble. His green eyes peeked out from his bushy eyebrows. He wore black trousers with a mail shirt over his regular clothing. He had his sword on his side, a bow in his hands and arrows in a quiver over his shoulder.

"The King's men arrived yesterday," he told her as he lifted a saddle from its hinges and placed it on the horse.

"I'm aware, I served them the last of our meat," she replied, noting that she needed to head to the market to buy more meat. Neither she nor Belanor hunted.

"They want me to deliver news to Harlond about Erebor," he informed while she watched as he tightened the strap around the stallion's abdomen and hoisted himself up on the horse.

Erebor was some Dwarfish mountain kingdom that Hera had read about to Adrielle when she was younger. The Dwarves had fled their palace because of a dragon named Smaug. She never understood why dragons had names. It wasn't as if he was a creature that could actually talk … but then again, she didn't know much about dragons and never would.

"How long will you be?"

"A fortnight."

"A fortnight? What am I to do?" she complained.

"Keep to the house," he shrugged and rode off.

"The difference between me and a horse," Adrielle said sadly to herself, wondering if she would ever leave the small, wooden shack near the Last Bridge. "It gets to leave and I must continue to slave away here. How much longer, I ask? How much longer will I be stuck in the same spot while the other women living near here move away, have children? The Elvin ladies of Rivendell see adventure each day and some cannot shoot a bow nor handle a sword as I can. "

The other inhabitant of the stables, a pony she named Iris, neighed loudly enough to drag Adrielle out of her thoughts. She heaved a bucket of water and placed it near the pony, hearing only the water splash around as Iris slurped it up. Adrielle sighed, but refrained from crying. She wanted so badly to see the world, to come face to face with danger and be saved by a prince. She wanted something other than watching the dirt in the garden or sweeping the kitchen.

****Hobbit****

Kíli sat beside his brother, Fili, at Bilbo Baggins' table. Fil had a head full of blonde hair, blue eyes and two braids that fell over his beard. The two were close, but looked as if they were from different families. Kíli had long, dark hair, brown eyes and barely had stubble on his face. He was enjoying his ale and a marvelous dinner consisting of fish, sausage and cheese. He glanced around the table and saw eleven other Dwarves, all of which (except for Kíli) had long beards, either braided or containing a braid. Bombur, the heaviest among the company, was, feasting on everything at once, attempting to fit two different types of bread in his mouth at once. Bofur, a Dwarf who had dark features and donned a silly hat, was slightly more careful with his food, using a fork and knife while the youngest of the Dwarves, the sweater loving Ori, was spilling ale on his clothes because he was laughing at something Dwalin was telling him..

Kíli enjoyed this type of setting. He never feasted in the dining halls of Erebor and while he was happy to save the kingdom he was a prince in, he would miss eating like this. This was what he would remember, sitting in a cramped space with his brother next to him and his friends hooting in delight over Ori burping.

"Oi! Kíli, are ye' ready to go off on this quest?" Balin asked him as Kíli nodded his head.

"I am, Master Balin," he replied with a cheerful smile.

"I should tell you, Kíli can shoot really well," Fili interjected. "He learned from me… and then got much better than me."

"You learned from father," he added.

"You still learned from me," Fili chortled standing up and walking out from the dining room.

"Your father," Gandalf, an older wizard with a grey beard and grey robes, who was going to accompany the dwarves on their quest, began. "Learned from the Elvin Lord Avourel."

The name sounded familiar to Kíli, Avourel. It hit him, then, that Avourel was an Elf who had married a human woman. When he was younger he remembered his father riding out from wherever they were living at the time to help Lord Avourel defend his castle from an Orc attack. When his father returned, he hugged Kíli and Fili, explaining that not only had the Elf lost his own life, but he died knowing his wife had been slain and his new born daughter's life was in jeopardy.

His uncle, Thorin, never approved of Elves. Not many Dwarves did, though. Perhaps he didn't care much because he had been born after Smaug took over Erebor. That wasn't to say he didn't understand why his kind didn't take kindly to that type of lot. The Elves had moved on, the world had moved on, why couldn't they move on?

"Whatever happened to that scum Avourel's daughter?" Dwalin asked the question that had been brewing within Kíli.

"She was supposed to be in the care of Lord Elrond of Rivendell," Gandalf explained."But she never made it there."

"So she died?" Kíli questioned just as Ori stood from his seat with his plate.

"That is the common belief, however I do believe the Princess of Eregion is alive," Gandalf smiled at Kíli. "I believe in the legend of the Lost Princess."

Kíli considered the possibility of the princess being alive this entire time. Where would her guardians have hidden her? After a few seconds of allowing himself to be immersed in thought, Kíli remembered he wanted to inspect the arrows that had been specially made for this quest. He hadn't had a chance to look at them, to see if they were as good as the dwarf who made them claimed they were. He excused himself from the table and meandered into the hall. He saw Ori beside Bilbo, a hobbit wearing a maroon robe and trousers, and Gandalf, a wizard with a grey beard wearing grey robes, asking where he should leave his plate.

_That little bugger,_ Kíli thought with a smile.

Fili approached the trio and said, "Here you go, Ori, give it to me."

Immediately Fili threw the plate to Kíli, who caught it despite having no warning. This was a common tradition among dwarves, to make a party of cleaning up after dinner. Those sitting at the table, began to hit their knives and forks together, creating a rhythm. It seemed to annoy Bilbo, which only egged the dwarves on.

"Careful! You'll blunt them!" Bilbo shouted.

"Did you hear that, lads? He says we'll blunt the knives," Bofur mysteriously smiled at everyone.

"Blunt the knives!" Kíli began to sing.

"Bend the Forks! Smash the Bottles and Burn the Corks! Chip the glasses and crack the Plates! That's what Bilbo Baggins Hates!"

Bilbo continued to run around, scared for his plates and his mother's doilies. The Dwarves didn't pay any attention to him, they merely continued to throw plates to one another while they sang, organizing them one at a time, knowing that Bilbo would be surprised as soon as he saw the end product. When they finished singing, they allowed the hobbit to see his precious plates and silverware neatly stacked on his table. He gaped for only a moment, prompting Kíli to nudge Fili.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, causing the laughter to die down. Everybody, save Bilbo, knew who to expect when Gandalf would open the door. It was Kíli's uncle, Thorin. The king-in-exile, King of Erebor. The one who would lead them to reclaim their home from Smaug, the dragon.

"He is here," Gandalf said in a serious voice.

Kíli did not know what to expect after this point. He had never been on a quest, but he was ready for it. He had been ready since he was a young Dwarf.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 : Time Shall Bring Out the Good**

Adrielle was sitting in a chair in the back of the home, reading beside candlelight. A chilly wind blew and made her skin crawl. She stood from the chair, deciding it would be best if she went to sleep for the night. As she walked towards the door, she caught a glimpse of herself in the glass of the window. She saw a round face with blue eyes and pale blonde hair that she braided from her forehead, around the side of her head to keep it out of her face. She was wearing a white silk shirt beneath a brown dress that reached her mid-thigh. Something she had done on purpose, so that she could move around with more ease. Of course, she wore woolen tights beneath this shorter dress, so it merely appeared as if she was wearing clothing that belonged to a man. She didn't care, nobody aside for Belanor and her friends saw her. She didn't need to act like a lady yet.

Feeling her lids become heavy, she walked inside the house, planning on washing up a little before she went to bed. The house was small, one big room with a fireplace and two smaller rooms. One room belonged to her and the other to Belanor. She rarely stepped foot into his room on account of it feeling like a bad omen. Walking across the main room, she heard someone knock on the front door, frightening her.

There were two types of visitors they ever received. The first type was friends and the second type was messengers from Gondor. Her friends never visited this late, which must mean that it was messengers. She hurried over to the door and opened it, only to see a man with dark hair and azure eyes. She did recognize him, but she could not remember from where.

"Adrielle? Daughter of Belanor?" he asked.

"I suppose that depends on who is asking," she replied.

"Oden, I have news of your father," the man introduced himself, stepping inside, without her permission. This gave her an unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach, something urged her to kick the man out, but she needed to know this news of her father.

"What news do you bring?" Adrielle asked.

"I assume you _are_ Adrielle, then?" Oden questioned.

"Yes," she answered cautiously. "Why are you not with my father?"

"He sent me here to pass on a message," he explained.

"Prove you are a part of my father's company," Adrielle demanded.

"It is not like a woman to order a man around."

"My father raised me as he would a son."

"Yet you're still a woman," Oden sneered.

"I have no desire to be a man," Adrielle scoffed. "And you still haven't shown me proof of being with the company."

Oden gave her a dubious smile as he lifted his hand to his neck. He brought out a chain that her father made for men who relayed messages to him from Gondor and the men he travelled with. Adrielle nodded her head in approval as Oden turned back around.

"You've not told me this news he passes to me," she reminded him, allowing herself to feel more comfortable.

"Why don't we discuss this over tea?" Oden gave her another smile. It felt as if he were hiding something behind his grin. His eyes seemed to be saying I know something that you don't and it'll be the ruin of you.

*****Hobbit*****

Belanor was hitting Stallion with the reigns as quickly as he could. For twenty years he had worked alongside the very men that had betrayed him today. Casimir and Oden, the friends he would have willingly laid his life down for, the friends who knew the truth about his daughter –the truth that Adrielle was not aware of herself- had stabbed him in the back.

Casimir had been aware that Adrielle was not truly Belanor's daughter. When Lady Ayda of Gondor, Adrielle's true aunt, was told to ride to Rivendell by Lord Avourel, she changed her mind, deciding it would prevent war if her niece was given to a knight who relayed messages for the king past the Last Bridge. He was a man familiar with weapons, a man who had a low enough profile so as to not attract attention. Casimir had been like an uncle to her and now he, along with the new messenger, Oden, was going hand her over to the Orcs that had been searching for her for seventeen years.

They hadn't shown up at the rally point where they usually waited for Belanor. Instead he found a pair of Orcs that had attacked him. They mocked him while telling him his friends were abducting his daughter and that by morning she would be dead.

He could not let that happen. He _would not_ let that happen. Belanor had vowed to Lady Ayda to protect Adrielle with his life. He would make good on that promise.

*****Hobbit*****

"So Belanor has died?" Adrielle asked in disbelief.

"He's fallen off of his horse, he's in a healer's home," Oden notified her. "He's asked that you come immediately."

Adrielle slunk down in her chair, her instincts screaming at her to not listen to him. She studied Oden more closely. Black hair, blue, deceiving eyes and a pointed nose. She glanced down at her tea, but caught sight of his hands. He had an unusual mark on his left hand. It looked like a symbol she had seen in one of her books. She tried remembering which book she had seen it in, but was interrupted by Oden rushing her to finish her tea.

"You really must hurry," he urged as she stood, still doubting that her father had been injured by falling off of his horse. He had been raised on a horse, he wouldn't just fall off of Stallion.

"Thank you," she began, starting towards the front door. "My father will be in good care of the healer. I'll set off at daybreak tomorrow. I'm much too tired to travel anywhere today."

Oden stood from his seat and walked around the main room. He touched the silver candle holders on the mantle about the fireplace and scoffed.

"There is a second message I'm to deliver," he said with his back towards her.

"What's that?"

"He will not make it to say goodbye to his precious Elvin filth!" Oden turned around, lurching towards her with a dagger.

She fell to the ground with a shriek. The man was atop her, trying to stab Adrielle with his dagger. Her heart was racing and she was trying to make sense of all that had happened. She was being attacked, for no reason, and he had called her Elvin filth. Why? Why had she been called an Elf?!

"Get off of me!" she screamed, using all of her strength to keep the dagger from her chest.

Nobody could help her. She was too far away from everyone and this man would kill her. She would lie dead on the floor for a fortnight before Belanor would find her and bury her.

"Get off!" she screamed again, tears pooling in her eyes. She attempted to knee him, but he was larger than her. Any fighting she would try, would be ineffective.

Suddenly Oden fell on top of her, his body lifeless, and Adrielle realized there was an arrow in the back of his neck. She rolled him off of her and saw Belanor in the back door with his bow in his hand. Adrielle gasped when she saw that he had blood on his face and chest.

"Belanor!" she called out, her nerves not seeming to settle down. "I told him you were raised on a horse! That you wouldn't have fallen off!"

Belanor ran up to her, placed his hand on her shoulder and, after inspecting her for any wounds, hugged her. Adrielle squeezed her father; she hadn't hugged him in a long time and his arms felt safe. Nothing could harm her.

"You have to go!" Belanor instructed her, parting the embrace as she caught sight of the mark on Oden's hand once again. "There are Orcs after you!"

That's where she saw it. It was a mark that belonged to Orcs. She had read somewhere that if a human betrayed his fellow man, then the Orcs were allowed to mark the man with their sign.

"He's working with the fallen Elves," Adrielle remarked.

"Did you hear me?" Belanor asked as she looked up at him, in a seeming trance.

"What do you mean?" she asked calmly despite her unsteady nerves. "Why do you have blood on yourself? Why are you not on your journey?"

"That is not of any importance," he helped her up, leading her out of the house and towards a post where he tied Stallion. "Listen, Adrielle, in time, you will find out something I have been trying to figure out how to tell you for seventeen years. I cannot tell you now, it will take too much time. Orcs are not kind. They are not merciful. You must ride off to Rivendell where everything will be explained to you by the Elves."

Adrielle stopped walking, causing Belanor to pull her hand, but she yanked it from his grasp. She was having a hard time understanding what was happening. All she wanted was an explanation. Why were _Orcs_ after her? She wasn't anybody important.

"I want an explanation!"

Belanor looked at his feet with impatience, "Do you remember Lord Avourel of Eregion?"

"Of course, he was an Elf who married a woman from Gondor and had a half Elvin child. He was slain in assurance for his infant's safety, but the baby died when Orcs caught up to the guard," Adrielle reiterated history. "It's actually still debated whether she really died, though."

"She made it and she has grown to be a wonderful daughter," Belanor placed a hand on her shoulder, making her eyes widen. "She cooked, she cleaned and she learned the things she did not want to. She pretended to be an adventurer and played with the Hobbits in The Shire. Now she has to ride off in the night, so that I can make good on a promise."

There was no possible way that she was Lord Avourel's daughter. She grew up in this small village, near the Last Bridge. Elves were meant to be tall, elegant and wise. They had abilities that she did not. They were light enough to walk atop snow, they could see from far distances as well as hear and they lived forever. Adrielle was short, even for a human, she wore peasant clothing and she never uttered anything wise. She had none of the abilities Elves possessed. Belanor guided her to Stallion and helped her up, not stopping his mission of sending her …sending her wherever he wanted.

"You're not my father?" she asked sadly.

"Lady Elora's sister, Ayda, brought you here because she believed it would prevent war between Rivendell and the Orcs. She was right and Hera loved having a daughter. I must apologize, Adrielle, for being distant, but I knew this would happen and I had to seclude you," Belanor informed. "Ride East to Rivendell, Lord Elrond will offer you sanctuary."

Before Adrielle could ride off, an arrow whizzed past her face and hit a post in the stables. Belanor unsheathed his sword and hit Stallion, causing the horse to take off.

"Ride!" he screamed as Stallion galloped away into the forest that would lead to the Last Bridge.

*****Hobbit*****

Adrielle could only hear Stallion's hooves hitting the ground as he galloped towards the east, following the path that would lead her there. Her own heart was racing, faster than humanly possible. Fear overwhelmed her senses. She couldn't think of anything besides how to survive. Her thoughts raced, but she tightened the reigns, stopping Stallion from moving forward.

Glancing behind, she didn't see anybody nearby, but she realized she was beginning hear hooves, though they were far away. Was she beginning to develop a new sense?

She guided Stallion into the woods, away from the path. These people were men that her father knew. He trusted them, put his life in their hands countless times, and they betrayed that trust. At least that's what Adrielle inferred. She had to assume that since men of higher standing wanted to kill her, then there must have been a price on her head as well. They wouldn't be able to kill her if they couldn't find her and the woods were perfect to conceal oneself in. She hopped off of Stallion, but held on to his reigns because it made her feel safer.

She had sauntered in the forest for what felt like ages, heading northeast. She walked east because she needed to reach Rivendell, north because she wanted to be as far away from the road as possible.

After another hour, she found a small clearing where she could tie Stallion and still have enough room to start a fire. She found that her nerves were beginning to settle, then she realized that she was more tired than she thought she had been. Her feet hurt from walking through the woods, her back from when Oden had pushed her down to the floor and she had a headache from replaying what happened at home.

She had opened the door, allowed the stranger in. He attacked her, but she struggled to avoid being killed. Then he had been killed by Belanor who, it turned out, wasn't her real father. Why would he have raised her? Was it out of duty? Or was it because he had so much pity for her? She didn't understand how she could have been the Princess of Eregion and never even have known. How did she not develop any Elvin abilities when she was younger?

_Oh, but you heard those horses from far away, didn't you? _ She asked herself. _Your instincts were quite strong about Oden._

But why then wouldn't have she noticed all of this before? Why wouldn't she have had these traits before she found out she was part elf. Her head hurt and she needed to sleep. She attempted to start a fire so that she could have light as she slept, but when she couldn't even form a spark she gave up. She laid down and allowed her mind to drift off.

Adrielle awoke to the sound of leaves rustling far away. Under the cover of darkness, she rushed over to Stallion, untangled his reigns from around the tree, and began to move forward without a second thought. She didn't want to wait to see if she had been found or if it was some animal.

"Belanor thinks his daughter can survive in these woods?" Adrielle heard a familiar voice. It belonged to her father's closest friend, Casimir.

She felt her heart drop in her chest. Casimir had held her when she was little, his wife had taught Adrielle how to braid her own hair and she once played with his children. How could he be a part of this fellowship that was hell bent on murdering her? She thought of Casimir's children; he had a daughter that was the same age as Adrielle.

She shook her head and continued walking, but stopped when she heard someone reply to Casmir.

"She has a horse with her," she heard a raspy voice that gave her a chilling feeling.

She gazed into the distance, hoping that her eyesight had improved just as her hearing had. From where she stood, she was able to see only thick forestry for miles behind her. Adrielle sighed, guiding Stallion further into the wood. She turned around again, with the same hope of having Elvin eyesight, but instead she saw a large red sack that she had mistook earlier as a part of the saddle. Adrielle untied the sack from the saddle and, as she went on, opened it. Inside, there was Belanor's quiver beside his bow. At least she had something to defend herself with now.

*****Hobbit*****

The Dwarves' day consisted of riding on ponies and making fun of one another. Kili noticed that every now and then somebody would make a joke about Bilbo, who didn't understand why he was being made fun of. In Kíli's opinion, however, if you complained about people using your bathroom and had crotchet in your house, then you deserved to be mocked. The only one among their group who refrained from the jests was Thorin. Kili never doubted his uncle and was well aware that Thorin had a big heart. The previous night, though, he had learned that his uncle had been through a great deal in his lifetime.

When the company was camping on a cliff, he and Fili were jesting about Orcs. They only wanted to scare Bilbo, who heard the screeching of the evil Elves. It was after Kíli smirked that Thorin had scolded him, making him feel guilty. Then Balin had told them why his uncle would not even joke about an Orc… Thorin's father had been beheaded by Azog the Defiler, the pale Orc.

"Thorin has seen more than you have in your seventy-seven years, Kili," Gandalf said to him, as if he read his thoughts. "Did you know that in human years you would be approaching your eighteenth year? Your uncle would be closer to forty six, proving my earlier statement."

"Are you a mind reader in addition to a wizard?" Kíli pried.

"No Master Kili, you were staring at your uncle," Gandalf explained, a twinkle in his eye as he smoked his pipe.

The young dwarf shrugged his shoulders, "I just wonder if he was always like this."

"Determined to return your line to its rightful place? Defeat a monstrous creature?" Gandalf asked with a scolding tone, causing Kili to feel guilty.

"I had not meant it in that way-"

"Of course you hadn't," Gandalf smiled. "My boy, Thorin has seen real battle. He has used his sword to save not himself, but others as well. You have used your sword in practice."

Kili laughed, to brush away the guilt. Anything could be swept away with laughter.

Thorin jumped off of his pony, when they reached somewhat of a path. The path lead to an abandoned house whose windows had been broken.

"We'll camp here for the night," Thorin ordered. "Fili, Kíli, look after the ponies. Make sure you stay with them."

Kíli watched as Gandalf roamed to the house. The twinkle in his eye turned to a look of concern as he looked around.

"A farmer and his family used to live here," Kíli heard Gandalf remark.

"Oin, Gloin, get a fire going," Thorin ordered the two dwarves.

"Aye," Oin replied.

Gandalf turned towards Thorin, who had approached the aged wizard with the confidence he usually carried.

"I think it would be wiser to move on," Gandalf told him. "We could make for the Hidden Valley."

Kíli saw his uncle develop a look of anger mixed with disgust, "I have already told you, I will not go near that place."

"Why not? The Elves could help us," Gandalf reasoned. "We could get food, rest, advice."

"I do not need their advice," Thorin angrily answered as Fili nudged Kíli.

"Don't eavesdrop," Fili warned him. "Come help me with the ponies."

Kíli listened to his brother and began to lead two ponies towards a post that belonged to the house. It would have to act as a stable for the night. While he tied the ponies' reigns to the post, he glanced at Thorin who still appeared upset. Why did his uncle hate the Elves so much? Orcs he could understand, but Elves, they were trying to protect their own kin.

The talk of Elves reminded Kíli of the miniature history lesson he had been given two nights ago. Lord Avourel and the famous missing half-Elf girl. Kíli decided that he liked the version where the girl lived because it was what seemed to satisfy Gandalf, who was usually correct in these matters. He and the Elf were alike, both living in exile, waiting for their time to come. It _would _come, for both of them. Time shall bring out the good.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Lost, but Found**

Gandalf had stormed away from the group of Dwarves, choosing to direct his anger in a hike rather than to continue his argument with Thorin. Their camping space was not safe, Rivendell was a few hours travel from here, but Thorin's hatred of Elves stood in the way of his reasoning. The wizard understood why Thorin felt the way he did. Gandalf probably would have a hard time forgiving someone he trusted.

Leaves rustling caught his attention and when he glanced up he noticed a flash of white move amongst the green of the leaves. Gandalf arched his brow as his feet carried him towards the spot where he saw the flash of white. The leaves continued to rustle, so Gandalf jogged in the direction from where he heard them. His instinct told him that this was no evil creature, but perhaps someone who had gotten lost, someone who could possibly be of use to the company. After a few minutes of running after noises, he ran into a clearing where a black horse was tied to a tree.

"Don't move," he felt a sharp point on the back of his neck.

The voice belonged to a young woman. The question that bothered Gandalf now pertained to the reason why the girl was running around in the woods by herself. He only saw one horse tied to a tree. If there were more people with her, then there should have been more horses.

"Turn around slowly, please," she instructed.

Gandalf did as the girl asked, noting that she had at least used 'please' while ordering him to turn around. He was greeted by the sight of a short, but thin woman holding a bow and arrow to Gandalf's chest. She had a round face, with high cheeks that were flushed and fearful blue eyes. She wore a white shirt beneath a short, brown dress that appeared as if she sewn it herself. In addition to her dress, she had woolen tights with blood on them. Since she was able to move around fine Gandalf assumed it belonged to someone- or something - else. Her hair was blonde, braided to one side, but greasy strands hung around her face. The girl needed sanctuary and he would try to help her, if she gave him the chance.

"Do you fear me or the image you created in your mind of me?" he questioned her, leaning on his staff.

She lowered her weapon, "I fear neither."

"Who are you?" Gandalf asked in, what he hope was, a kind tone.

"I suppose I've been trying to figure that out for the last two days," she answered.

"I meant your name," he corrected himself.

"Adrielle," the girl replied, looking up at Gandalf. "And you are?"

"Gandalf the-"

"Grey!?" her eyes lit up as she excitedly finished his own introduction. "I've read about you! You're one of the five wizards! I never thought I'd meet you!"

"And did you think you would be by yourself in the middle of the woods?" Gandalf pried. "With blood all over yourself?"

Something about this young woman told him she had lived a very sheltered life. To make up for her lack of adventure, she had turned to books. That was how she came to know who Gandalf was. Then there was the fact that she could handle a bow and arrow, with what skill Gandalf could not say, but she was odd. Even the way she dressed didn't suit her.

"Gandalf, you wouldn't believe anything I had to say," Adrielle slowly strolled towards her horse. "I can barely believe it myself."

Gandalf saw as the color drained from Adrielle's face once again. She was exhausted with all this business of running away from her demons. He feared, though, that as a woman- a very young one at that- she wouldn't reach her goal by herself. Perhaps it was fate that brought the two together in this clearing. Maybe he was meant to help her.

"And why wouldn't I?" he asked. "You've no reason to lie to me. I have nothing of value you can take."

"Do you know the story about the Princess of Eregion?"

"Of course."

"Do you believe those who say that Orcs have killed her?"

"I believe that something may have happened so as to stop evil from going any further," Gandalf told her, sitting on a nearby boulder.

"Something _did_ happen," Adrielle said. "I was given to Belanor of Gondor and his wife, Hera, by Lady Elora's sister, Ayda, when I was born. Belanor was a knight serving as a courier."

Gandalf smiled when Adrielle went straight to her point. He knew there had been something odd about her. If she possessed any skill with her bow, Thorin would allow her to join the company. Gandalf would simply have to keep the girl's lineage a hushed matter. Once they reached Rivendell, and reach Rivendell they would, he would ask Lord Elrond to take Adrielle into his care. How fortunate was he that he had found the lost Princess of Eregion.

"So Lady Ayda gave you to a knight?" Gandalf inquired.

"Precisely and I would have had a grand life if I merely appreciated my father more," Adrielle mumbled with a guilty expression on her face. "I didn't know he took me in. If I had known that I wouldn't have acted the way I did- I understand why I was a burden."

"What happened, Adrielle?"

She was still standing beside the horse, her back against it. Her fingers were entangled in the mane, seemingly grasping onto it for safety. The wizard did not judge her for this, for in the wild she did not have a single person to turn to.

"Evil happened," she mumbled turning around, abruptly as if she heard something in the distance. "Why is this happening?"

"Your circumstances are not a punishment," Gandalf stood from the boulder and made his way towards her. "Think of them as a way to prove yourself strong."

He put his hand on her shoulder while she was still gazing into the woods. Her eyes had some sort of white light around the iris that had not been there before. The light was typical of Elvin eyes, it meant they were able to see further than Man, Dwarf or Wizard.

"No, I meant my eyes and ears," Adrielle explicated. "My entire life I could see only the horizon or that what was directly in front of me, now it's as if I see the entire world. I hear things that are so far away now too."

"You shall be a part of the company," Gandalf declared. It would be of great benefit to have someone who was an Elf, even if Thorin wouldn't approve.

"Our?" she asked, turning her head.

*****Hobbit*****

Adrielle stared at an empty camp ground that Gandalf the Grey had led her to. She had met the wizard not more than an hour ago and was thrilled to have met him. She spent her youth reading about the five wizards in Middle Earth. Radagast the Brown was always her favorite because he had a sort of connection to the woods, but Gandalf had an aura of wisdom surrounding him. He made her feel safe, welcome. He wassaving her from Casimir. Speaking of Casimir, she could not hear the traitor behind her any longer, but she made sure to cover Stallion's tracks as hers were no longer appearing in the ground. Gandalf had reminded her Elves were too light to leave footprints, when there was snowfall, they merely walked atop the snow, unlike Man.

She led Stallion deeper into the encampment as she studied the terrain around her. The camp ground that was now in front of her appeared as if it had just been abandoned. A small fire was lit beneath a kettle that still had some sort of stew in it. A couple of small tents were up as well, but there was nobody there. It had been vacated.

"I fail to see anybody," she remarked.

"That's because they left to deal with something," Gandalf noted in a tone that hinted he was trying to figure out what had happened to his company. "Their weapons are missing."

Adrielle heard someone talking just then, "The secret to cooking dwarf is …you … have _to_…skin them first!"

"I think they're that way," she pointed to where she heard the voice come from. "And from what I can hear, they might be skinned."

"Elfish ears," Gandalf smiled. "Lead the way."

"What? Lead the way? Gandalf, I'm not even sure if I should be hearing these things! What if it's in my head?" Adrielle pointed out.

"You are an Elf! You're meant to hear things from far away. The leader of the company has a grudge against Elves, but if you help save him he may grant you safe passage," Gandalf explained.

Adrielle tried to listen for the voice once again, but instead heard too many to count. She walked past an empty, old house where Gandalf paused for a minute.

"The ponies are gone," he informed her.

"How many were there?" she questioned as the wizard caught up to her.

"Fifteen along with my horse," he explained.

"N-not that one! He-he-he's infected!" Adrielle heard the same voice again.

"You wha'?" someone else, someone clearly bigger, asked.

"Yeah, he's got worms in his… tubes," she heard the other voice respond, in an unsure manner. "I-in fact they all have- they're all infested with parasites it's a terrible business, I wouldn't risk it, I really wouldn't."

"We don't have parasites!" a third voice protested. "You have parasites!"

This last statement made Adrielle laugh. Whatever she had been expecting it had not been that. To her, it was almost as if the first person to whom the first voice belonged to was trying to buy some time while the person whom the third voice belonged to did not realize what was happening.

"Shh," Gandalf hushed her, pointing towards a light in the dark. "Tie up Stallion to that tree, we are dealing with trolls."

Adrielle's heart leapt in her chest, but she did as she was told. Trolls? She was skilled with a bow, but it was no match against a troll. How would she help save Gandalf's company if she wouldn't be able to save herself?

The pair crept up behind a fallen log, big enough to conceal them from everybody. Adrielle saw three monstrous, gray trolls. Their heads enormous, but their facial features squished onto their faces. One was facing a Hobbit who was tied up in a sack. A second one was turning Dwarves who were roasting on a pit. The final troll was staring at a pile of Dwarves in similar sacks to the Hobbit's. One of the Dwarves stood out in Adrielle's eyes. He had long, dark hair, a handsome face with brown eyes and, surprisingly, no beard. If she hadn't been scared out of her wits, her eyes might have lingered a moment longer, but fear of being crushed by troll teeth overwhelmed her.

"You must distract the trolls long enough for me to get to that boulder," Gandalf said as she gaped at him.

"Isn't that what the Hobbit's doing?" she asked as calmly as she could, but she knew fear had escaped in her tone.

"If he fails, I don't want any of the Dwarves eaten while I'm caught by the other trolls," he explained. "You're a smart girl, use your head when you're out there."

Adrielle took a deep breath as she nodded her head and swung one leg over the log. The worrying feeling in her stomach worsened as she walked into the clearing where the trolls and their hostages were.

Everybody including the trolls stared at her with confused expressions. Her mind grasped for any ideas of what to say or do, but all she could think of was to shriek. Following her instincts, she did just that and collapsed to the forest floor, near the Dwarfish weapons. She was beginning to formulate a plan, even though dread clouded her mind.

"Wha's all this abou' ?" one of the trolls asked, nearing her. "Git' me a sack for her!"

With one leap, she was back on her feet, wielding a sword that she had to hold with both hands. If she hadn't had motivation to fight the creatures before, she did now. She would not allow herself to be thrown in a sack. She used the sword to poke the monster's eye, causing it to back into his fellow troll and let out a grunt of pain.

"Who is that?" she heard one of the Dwarves from the pit call out.

"Our dinner!" a troll roared, swinging out his hand at her.

She jumped out of the way and tried leaping over the other stone-like hand of the troll , but tripped. Luckily, she hadn't fell on the sword, but she did have the wind knocked out of her.

"Git' her!" the booming voice, urged her to roll out the way.

When she did finally stand, she was face to face with one of the trolls. She had no idea what she was doing and by the looks of it, she was not helping anybody. Hadn't she told herself earlier that she wouldn't be able to save herself?

"It'll be a shame to eat you," the troll said, letting out an awful stench from its mouth. "Maybe we'll just put you in our horde!"

Suddenly Gandalf appeared on the boulder, his staff in his hand. Adrielle held on tightly to the sword, not knowing whether Gandalf would succeed in his plan.

"The dawn will have you all!" he shouted.

"Wha's Tha'?" the troll that she injured asked, covering his eye with his giant hand.

"No idea," the second shrugged.

"Can we eat 'im too?" the third suggested right before Gandalf hit the boulder with his staff, cracking it and allowing sun to seep in.

Adrielle gasped as the Dwarves' captors began to harden and turn to stone. She never knew trolls turned into stone if the sun hit them. _That _was something she would care to remember.

After Gandalf and Adrielle helped each of the Dwarves from the fire pit or their sacks, a Dwarf that was just a touch taller than Adrielle approached her. He had dark hair that was graying, a dark beard and a fur overcoat. Her eyes scanned the area for Gandalf, but she realized he was busy helping the Hobbit from his sack.

"Not many women would wander into the woods alone," he said to her, a gleam in his brown eyes despite a serious look on his face.

"I w-was with Gandalf," she told him nervously, the other Dwarves glancing every so often at her, but otherwise they pretended to be tied up with collecting their weapons or talking to each other about the scary encounter.

"I am Thorin Oakenshield, son of Thrain," the Dwarf explained. "Who does my thanks go out to?"

Adrielle was extremely nervous. She wasn't just standing beside royalty, but royalty that had been exiled. He was King of Erebor, the Lonely Mountain. Gandalf had given her an idea of what Thorin's quest was for. He wanted to reclaim his throne from Smaug and he would fight to the death for his kingdom. He had been tied up by trolls and looked presentable. All she had done was run through the forest for two days. She probably looked and smelled as if she had died.

"Adrielle," she replied. "Of the Last Bridge."

That last part she added herself, hoping nobody would judge her for it. In today's day, it was not enough to merely have a first name. Less and less people had boasts, so they identified themselves based on where they were from.

"That small village?" he asked her.

"Yes," she answered as he gazed into her eyes.

"And you've lived there your entire life?"

"Raised by Belanor, Knight of Gondor, and his beloved, Hera," she told him as a slight smile crept across his face.

"Gandalf believes you can help us," Thorin said.

"I don't believe it," she responded, knowing it was not what he was expecting. "I can use a bow, but not well enough to be considered an archer. I know how to use a sword properly, but I assure you I cannot lift one-"

"Yet the wizard wants you on this journey," he interrupted her. "How old are you?"

"I've been here for seventeen winters," she replied, taking his earlier statement as a sign that he did not care she was intruding on his quest.

"You're nothing more than a child. Same as Kíli and Ori," Thorin chuckled as the rest of the Dwarves looked on, perplexed. "Yet you're properness surprises me."

Adrielle looked at her feet with a smile, "I suppose it's merely nerves. It's not every day that someone like me meets a King and his company. Can I ask why you're not demanding that I leave?"

"If I had a choice, I would give you directions to the nearest town, but seeing that you are a woman and that there are trolls in these woods, I cannot let you go off on your own," he explained to her, turning around and heading towards Gandalf.

"Thank…you?" she called after him, not knowing whether she should be offended by the explanation or grateful that she had been accepted by the King.

"The pleasure is all ours," a blonde Dwarf with a braided beard came up to the her with the Dwarf Adrielle had noticed earlier, the handsome one who had no beard. "Fíli."

"And I am his brother, Kíli," the dark haired Dwarf introduced himself.

"Adrielle," she replied her stomach in knots.

Adrielle found herself at a loss of words. She was terrible at talking with new people, except for Gandalf. He made her feel welcome … and she thought he was going to kill her. Finding words when defending yourself was not difficult.

"You know, my uncle rarely ever smiles," Fíli informed her, a grin on his face as his brother leaned on his shoulder, with the same grin.

"Unlike the two of you," she pointed out, making them snicker.

"How did you end up here?" Kíli asked, circling around her. He was short, like all Dwarves, but like Thorin, he was taller than her by a hair.

"I got lost in the woods," she lied, recalling that Gandalf had mentioned to keep her lineage a secret. "And Gandalf found me, promised me safe passage."

Adrielle noticed another Dwarf wearing mittens leading Stallion behind the brothers. She had completely forgotten that she had tied Stallion to a tree before she helped distract the trolls. She found that she was beginning to feel possessive over the horse. Stallion had been the only thing that had kept her sane over the past two days. Kíli and Fíli both arched their brows at the sight of the little Dwarf beside the large horse.

"Ori? Where'd you get that horse from?" Fíli shouted to the Dwarf.

"I found it tied to a tree," he explained himself, his voice resembling that of a child's. Adrielle remembered Thorin saying that Ori was the youngest.

"He's mine," she told them. "His name is Stallion."

"Here you go!" he handed her the reigns, with a frightful look on his face and ran off to a Dwarf who wore a silly hat.

"Why is he afraid of me?" she looked up at Kíli, meeting his brown eyes.

"Well, I mean," Kíli looked at Fíli. "You look as if you've fallen in a swamp. He probably mistook you for a Goblin."

Adrielle felt her mouth fall open as her hands quickly went up to her hair. She knew she didn't look good, but she didn't want to look like a Goblin in front of Kíli… whom, she had to admit, was the handsome Dwarf. Suddenly he and Fíli erupted in laughter as Adrielle let out an exasperated sighed. The Dwarf with the silly hat walked up to the trio.

"Don't worry, you look like any girl would if she had gotten lost in the woods," he cheered her up. "I'm Bofur. I think it's time you separated yourself from these gents' and met the others."

Adrielle nearly scoffed, but restrained herself, feeling it would be rude. There were thirteen Dwarves plus a Hobbit. While her memory was amazing (she didn't want to brag, but she could memorize things quite quickly), fourteen names to remember while she was nervous was not going to be easy.

**So I'm hoping that you guys can start seeing the change in Adrielle! She's starting to see that she may not be as brave or as ready for adventure as she first thought she was. Let me know what you guys think! Is it too Mary-Sue-ish? Is it too boring? I need opinions!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4 : Kíli Saves Adrielle**

Kíli glanced at the surprise Gandalf greeted them with when he returned from wherever he had disappeared to. She was a young human girl that was afraid. Her blonde hair hadn't been washed in a couple of days and she looked as if she had escaped from a pack of Orcs, but Kíli knew she hadn't. She had told them that she was lost in the woods when Gandalf found her. Something gnawed at Kíli, telling him that there was more to the girl than just that. The horse that Ori brought over to her, had a rolled pack. If Kíli was to find answers to his questions, perhaps they would lie in the pack.

He glanced behind his shoulder to see that Adrielle was walking into the cave with his uncle, the wizard and a couple of other Dwarves. He walked up to her horse, Stallion, as it let out a neigh. Kíli hoped it hadn't attracted much attention because he began to open the pack. He was startled to find that it only contained a bow with a quiver of arrows. If this girl was simply lost in the woods, though, then why did she have a bow and arrows?

"What are you doing?" Bilbo walked up to Kíli, holding an Elfish dagger that he did not have before.

"Nothing," Kíli lied, placing everything back where it belonged.

"Are you looking through her things?" he asked.

"No," Kíli responded, acting as if he were offended. "Why? Did you intend to? Is that why you came here?"

"No!" Bilbo raised his hands in protest. "I don't –"

"Mr. Baggins! That's an invasion of privacy, that is!" Kíli accused with a smirk while he crept away from Stallion and Bilbo, whose jaw had dropped.

"And what did exactly did you find?" Fili asked when Kíli reached him.

"What do you mean?"

"I saw you looking through her things. Now you may be able to trick the Halfling, but I taught you how walk away without a fight," Fili countered.

"I found a bow along with a quiver full of arrows," Kíli admitted.

"And that's unusual because?"

"Because she's a seventeen year old human girl in the woods," Kíli explained.

"Brother, don't over think this," Fili said to him. "She was lost in the woods-"

"Stay together! Hurry now!" Gandalf's voice interrupted whatever his brother was about to say. "Arm yourselves."

Kíli quickly pulled out an arrow and readied his own bow while Fili armed himself with his knives. Whatever was happening, he wouldn't allow for it to harm the company. He could hear something moving incredibly fast through the trees and his heart pounded in his chest. He wouldn't deny that he was scared, it was, after all his first quest, but he would do his best to not show his fear.

He glanced to see where Ori was, the only Dwarf who had nothing aside a slingshot for a weapon, but instead saw Adrielle standing next to their burglar and Ori. The trio looked terrified , but the girl stood in front of Bilbo as well as Ori. Kíli was surprised by this. He didn't think that a girl, much less one like Adrielle who spent her life in a book, would ever have the courage to defend someone she had just met. Who was she? She had a bow, she had a horse and this intriguing courage despite her trepidation.

"Stay behind me," he heard her say, startling him even more.

"And you behind me," Kíli sashayed to her.

"Thieves! Fire! Murder!" a man on rabbit led sled appeared from the trees. He looked as if he had lived in the wild for far too long. Guano ran down the side of his face, forcing Kíli to wonder what lived beneath his giant, brown hat. Mud covered his clothes while sticks were poking out from his gray hair. It was, at the very least, an odd sight before the Dwarves.

"Radagast! Radagast the Brown!" Gandalf called out cheerfully, perplexing the entire company. "What are you doing here?"

"I was looking for you Gandalf!" the man explained. "Something's wrong terribly wrong!"

Kíli was only half-listening as Radagast explained to Gandalf what was happening in the Greenwood. He understood that the Greenwood was sick that some type of evil was looming about. His eyes drifted to Adrielle, who had walked up with Bilbo to Radagast. Behind the peasant clothing and the dirty hair was most likely a pretty girl, he just wanted to know if she was a trustworthy girl.

"I used to read about him when I was little," she turned back to Kíli. "He fascinated me."

He smirked, "And you fancy yourself the bird droppings as well?"

Adrielle rolled her eyes, "He's odd, no doubt about it, but I like him. Bird droppings and all."

Kíli laughed at her statement. There was no harm in him having a conversation with her. Maybe it would even help him in his secret task of finding out if she was being honest or not.

There was a low growl from the trees, grabbing Kíli's attention. He gawked at a beast he had never seen before. The animal was colossal; it had gray matted fur and the face of a wolf. It could not be called a wolf, though, for it had a tremendous upper body that narrowed in the back. If the creature's lean muscles weren't enough to scare someone, its razor sharp teeth would've done the job.

"Warg scouts!" Kíli heard someone shout.

The brute leaped over most of the company, attacking Adrielle's horse which reacted by whinnying. Adrielle ran up as Dwalin brought down his axe on the warg's head, killing it. Another warg scout, coming from a different direction, jumped on Adrielle who let out a shriek.

"Kíli your bow!" Thorin shouted.

Kíli wasted no time in shooting an arrow at the scout. It jumped on its hind legs then fell on its back. Their attackers were dead, but they had inflicted a lot of damage. The horse was dying, there was nothing anybody could do for it, and Adrielle had been scratched. Kíli watched as she sat up, held her bleeding shoulder with her free arm, and did her best to steady her breathing.

"Who did you tell about your quest beyond your kin?!" Gandalf demanded from Thorin in an accusing manner.

"No one," Thorin answered, confusion sweeping over his face.

"Who did you tell!?" Gandalf persisted.

"No one. I swear! What in Durin's name is going on?" Thorin asked.

"You're being hunted!" Gandalf told him.

Kíli had a feeling that the company wouldn't be staying in this spot much longer. He looked to his brother who was gaping at Thorin. Every Dwarf and Bilbo seemed to be zeroed in on Thorin or Gandalf. The only person not staring at the showdown between Wizard and King was Adrielle. She was still on the ground, but now she was beside her horse with silent tears coursing down her face.

"We have to get out of here!" Dwalin shouted as Kíli ran up to Adrielle.

"We have to move," he said, trying to help her to her feet while Radagast offered to draw the wargs away.

"I can't just leave him, he's in pai-"

"So are you!" Kíli interrupted her, this time forcing her to her feet and dragging her away from Stallion.

*****Hobbit*****

Adrielle felt misery wash over her. Stallion had been the only thing that was her link to the life she had three days ago. It was her fault the horse had died, it was her fault that Belanor was either killed or being held prisoner by Orcs. If she hadn't wished for adventure and never cursed how boring her life was then perhaps everything would be normal.

The company of Dwarves was hidden behind a rock from warg scouts hunting for them. She leaned against Kíli's shoulder. She couldn't pretend to be brave and she couldn't feign strength. She was seventeen years old, Elvin or not, she wanted to cry from an overload of pain.

Adrielle, during a moment of focusing on her surroundings, heard a warg scout running towards them. It was growling and sniffing the air for them. If she stayed quiet, would they live? Would they realize she was part Elf? What did someone do in a situation like this? She had never had to hide something from anybody. She was a raised in a village, what would she hide from Belanor? The fact that the horses had eaten more hay than they usually did?

"There is a scout above us," she whispered as quietly as she could, to nobody in particular.

She felt Kíli move from his place and observed as he used his bow to shoot a scout that was looming over them on the rock. While it may have been inappropriate for her to do so, she couldn't help but admire the stern look on his face as he dove into the dangerous situation. He was handsome, brave and funny, and then there was her. She was crying over her horse and bleeding because somehow she attracted bad things. It was evident since the day she was born. On day one, her family is massacred, then Belanor had to suffer because of her, and, now, the Dwarves' quest was cursed. She would wager the clothes on her back, though she did not know if anybody would want them, that they had been trapped by the trolls only after Gandalf decided to take her in. After the trolls, came the attack by the warg scouts and what had Ori shouted while Stallion was dying? That the ponies had bolted.

"Move!" Gandalf ordered, disrupting the pity session Adrielle was having.

She felt someone grip her arm tightly and help her move along. When she glanced to see who it was, she saw Kíli by her side. She was touched that he was helping her. He had shot the warg that jumped atop her, then he made sure she was dragged to safety and now, it seemed, he wasn't letting her out of his sight. Maybe she could return the favor… If her luck didn't mess that up as well.

"This way! Quickly!" she heard Gandalf shout in between the threatening howls of the wargs that were behind them.

Adrielle glanced behind her shoulder and nearly fainted from fright. She had only ever read about Orcs, but never had she seen one in person. They were foul. Their skin was grey and their eyes glowed red. How anyone managed to fight one was beyond her, because she couldn't look at them without feeling sick. Adrielle turned her head back, only to be greeted by the sight of more Orcs. Her eyes frantically scanned the area and she saw that they were surrounded.

"Shoot them," she whispered to Kíli, who stepped in front of her with his bow.

"Kíli shoot them!" Thorin repeated the order she had given out a second before.

As the Dwarves shouted things Adrielle couldn't hear because of her apprehension, she saw Ori standing in front of warg with an Orc sitting on top of it. She hit Kíli's shoulder, catching his attention, and pointed towards the scene. An arrow whizzed towards the creature, impaling its forehead and killing it.

"This way you fools!" Gandalf's voice echoed, but Kíli did not budge, so neither did Adrielle. He hadn't left her side earlier and she wasn't planning on leaving his.

"Kíli!" Thorin called out to the Dwarf beside her.

"Let's go," she tugged on his coat as he shot one last arrow.

The pair ran towards a rock at which Thorin had slain one of their assailants. The king did not disappear into the hidden passageway the rock contained until both his nephew and Adrielle had jumped over it. Almost immediately a strange sound bellowed on the ground above and a fallen Orc slid into the cave the company had hid in.

Adrielle, finding it difficult to stare at the Orc, stepped away from the body and sat down on a rock. She recounted the events of the past few hours. Pain began to make its way back into her shoulder as the terror she felt earlier died down. She was a bad omen.

*****Hobbit*****

Thorin studied Adrielle as she sat on a rock in the cave. She was covered in blood and couldn't even look at the dead Orc. He had suspected that it had been her who had given away their location, had spied them out and given notice about Thorin to the Orcs. Many Men would do anything if they were offered a price. When the group had been surrounded, though, he had taken note of the fact that she hadn't left his nephew when Gandalf showed the way for safety. Adrielle stood by Kíli's side, even though she saw the others running to the hidden passage. It told everyone something about her character. Thorin wasn't one to give out compliments when they weren't deserved, but he wouldn't stop himself from acknowledging when someone showed loyalty. This girl, that came from an unimportant village, from an unimportant family, had shown him something he didn't think she would be capable of.

"Why is she upset?" Fili's voice became audible.

"She was close to her horse," Thorin saw Kíli shrug.

"Well go make her feel better," Fili urged his brother.

"No," Kíli replied. "What am I going to say? Sorry your horse's gut was ripped out? That'll just make her feel worse!"

"Think of something," Thorin whispered to Kíli, whose expression developed into one of confusion. "She stayed beside you even though she wanted to run away."

"If that isn't a friend, I don't know what is," Fili chimed in as the Dwarf stepped away from his family and towards Adrielle.

"Kíli doesn't think she's who she says she is," Fili told his uncle as Thorin glanced at his nephew.

"He and I are of one mind," Thorin said. "Neither do I."

"Why?" Fili inquired.

"Who mourns over a horse?"

"A seventeen year old girl-"

"No, someone who hasn't had others to speak to, so therefore became attached to an animal," Thorin corrected. "My question is why was she secluded? Why was she hidden?"

"You don't think she's dangerous, though, do you?" Fili asked.

"No," Thorin answered. "She was too scared when she saw the Orcs. I think she doesn't know who she is."

"So how will _we_ find out?" Fili sighed.

Thorin looked toward Gandalf, "I didn't say _others_ wouldn't know who she is."


End file.
